Friday, May 28, 2010

home

and a new chapter beings.... we are H O M E.

we are so grateful for all that Uncle Joe and Aunt Maureen have done.  
we can't wait to make many new memories at Home.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

great morning

today we celebrated 2 special events... Will's last day of his 1st year of Preschool and Gabi turning 3 months old. We really wish we could slow this time down!
showing off his certificate!
classroom sing-alongs
being silly with Ms. Mercado!

3 months old today!
today I noticed tiny speckles of  brown in her eyes.  even though her eyes have remained pretty light, they will be brown.  It will be interesting to see their final color!  (more on Gabi on her Babysite journal update tonight)
link to:

the fun continues outside!
and Gabi goes on her first outdoor swing ride!


Tuesday, May 25, 2010

little moments

these are little moments and memories I don't want to forget... so what better way than to blog them =)

Isa: recently has been caught saying "I SURELY do" with a complete southern accent!
Will: is being sooo silly these days. He gives us the WRONG answers to questions on purpose! I hope he doesn't do this at school...yikes!
Gabi: has such a HUGE smile that it makes her eyes close.
Isa & Will: LOVE singing. they make up songs, sing real song, and are often caught singing "So Long Farewell" from the Sound of Music when people leave.
Isa: the way she says "HI" to Gabi every chance she gets... in a real enthusiastic and high voice "hhhhhiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii" (we really need to record this one day)
Will: he is fearless... we saw him jump off the clubhouse opening at Gramma & Bapa's!
Will: the way he blossoms and interacts when he is the only child around (usually after Isa goes to bed!)
Isa: when she sings, she really hits some of those high notes... glasses beware!
Will and Isa: L O V E the water, bath, and swimming in general! Summer, here we come! Even Gabi LOVES her baths and get so excited in the water!
Gabi: even this early, we are pretty sure she is going to have curls like Isa!

right now... i have heard Daddy and the kids make up 3 different bath songs =)
it makes me smile!

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Friday, May 14, 2010

orlando

since we were in Orlando, Monika and I decided it was easier to spend the night than try to drive both ways in 1 day.  we took full advantage of this and stayed at the Nickelodeon hotel!


C O U S I N S

for those that don't know... my mom and 2 of her sisters moved to the US around the age of 18 for a better life.  Each had 2 children... the 6 of us grew up more like siblings than cousins.  over the years, even when life has taken us different directions..... the pull of family is still strong and we make every effort to see each other.  Well, now us cousins have little ones of our own and of the 3 sisters that came from Peru, now there are 12 grandchildren.  This past weekend Eddie, my sister and I drove up to Orlando to visit with Carla who was in town with her in-laws for a family vacation.  We only visited for a couple of hours, but we had a great time and it was great to have our 8 little ones together (we were still missing 4 of the little cousins though).

 from left to right:  Isa, Aidan, Will, Jack, Andrew, Matthew, Sebastian & Gabi
the gang that day.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

sweetest day

What a wonderful mother's day we had.  Monika and I enjoyed the morning at the beach with our families.  The kids had a great time and were wonderfully behaved.  It truly was a special day!



Gabi's first time at the beach!
Monika and her family!
the gang...

special flowers from Tob and the kids =)


day out

This weekend Tobin joined us in FL for a mini vacation. On Saturday we did something we love to do... explore nature. It was our first time visiting the Everglades National Park. Our exploration began with a 15 mile tram ride through the Everglades where we encountered alligators, blue herons, anhingas, wood storks, and turtles. Isa made the crowd giggle when the tour guide pointed out a bird during the intro and Isa said "it's not a BIRD, it's a Hawk" =). It really was a Boat Tailed Grackle.
We then took a short trail through a portion of the park, had lunch, and then went on an air boat ride (our first as well). The air boat ride was really fun and a little scary with the kids. We all had a great time! Gabi had some special alone time with her cousins and Tia and Uncle (it was WAY too hot to take her).

pointing at an alligator!



waiting for our air boat
view from the air boat, pretty cool
back at home with Gabi

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Gabi Rose

apparently Gabi is also enjoying the extra attention and sunshine here =)

Sunday, May 2, 2010

birthday fun at the Sunshine State

last night we arrived in Florida to VERY warm weather.  this morning the kids all woke up and had a great time spending the day together.  they started off the day with breakfast, a "pretend" breakfast on the couch, and then getting ready for Andrew's 2nd birthday party at The Little Gym.  They all had a great time (although none of them had naps beforehand, so Andrew was really tired).  it's amazing to watch them play and interact together... as if they see each other every day, they get along so well that it's heartwarming.  Isa and Aidan and two peas in a pod (enough said).  They all played with trains, played outside, and had fun with some extended family cousins too!  we got a chance to finally meet cousin Eddie & Nicole's little Sebastian, and also Luis & Yanet's new lil arrival Amanda!

making herself at home....
(needless to say...  we sang "the wheels on the bus" all the way home)
the new little ones with their Mommies
(cousins) we were even lucky enough to have a cousin from Peru join us for the day!